Organizers of the first KCI Winter Carnival are “very pleased” with the experience and have learned much regarding how to make it better next year.
The Kamsack Comprehensive Institute band students and parents organized the carnival from 4 p.m. to about 8 p.m. on February 20 as a “fun time” for families, as well as being a fundraiser for the band program.
“There was never a lull; there was always activity,” said Darren Kitsch, the band instructor and an organizer of the event, which was organized as a way to get young families out of the house on a winter day to enjoy fun.
Band students and their parents made and then operated about 15 stations, he said. At each station, contestants used their pre-purchased tickets in order to participate, usually at games of chance.
Many people donated items for the auction, which included pieces of students’ art, he said. Mike Tourangeau of Cote First Nation, brought a team of horses and sleigh to offer sleigh rides.
“We did this as a way of building a community within the band program and have the band more visible in the community,” Kitsch said.
“In total we raised over $1,000 for the band program,” he said, adding that the band parents plan to hold another winter carnival next year and even expand on it.
“We agreed that February is a good time to dwell on a fun winter experience,” he said. “We expect interest will grow as the event grows. There is much more that we could do.
“Many of the band parents said that they had a lot of fun.”
Kitsch said that next year they will develop a plan so that live music can be integrated into the winter carnival.
